The Legend of Maryon: Ores of Olde
by The Proverbial Pen
Summary: "This is it…I'm going to die, aren't I….? Maybe there's a chance…? No, there's no way I'm going to survive this fall…. It's been quite a ride…I'm glad I got to have one last adventure… Well, live on, lover boy…Don't screw this up… After all…We've come way too far…. Too far to see Hyrule fall."


Chapter 1: The Blacksmith's Son

The ground shook with tremendous force. All around me, the sound of horrified screams filled the air, deafening any poor soul caught within the town square. Panic-filled steps hit hard cobblestone. Sprinting to safety, they prayed to the goddesses for protection. If you thought that I would be joining them in their mad dash for safety, you'd be wrong. I walked in the opposite direction. I walked away from the crowds, away from the safety of a shelter, and away from any rational idea I had ever had. It was almost as if I was being drawn to the epicenter of the quake.

When I reached the center, I looked up and saw a man. He had long red hair that was tied back and a scar under each eye, which added to his formidable look. A maniacal grin was plastered on his face. He eyes surveyed the destruction which I assumed he had caused somehow. His violet eyes, full of malicious intent, landed on me. He raised a sleek eyebrow and wore an amused look on his face.

"Maryon," he chimed with a tone full of mockery. "Maryon!" he yelled, eyebrows beginning to furrow as his grin turned to a frown. "Maryon!" he exclaimed, even louder this time. He seemed to be becoming angrier and angrier with each time he uttered my name. "Maryon, get your lazy ass out of bed now!"

I jumped in surprise and my face gracefully made contact with a cold surface. After getting over the initial shock of pain that had coursed its way through my body, I opened my eyes to come face to toe with some old, rugged-looking boots. They looked familiar, and while trying to place where I had seen them, I heard the sound of a throat clearing above me. My gaze shifted upward to find eyes that held that same air of familiarity. I soon realized that they belonged to one Terrance Lorel, a prominent blacksmith in Castle Town. He was a rather large man, but that was mostly due to the sheer amount of muscle he possessed. He had a glorious beard of brown with a mustache and head of hair to match. Though a somewhat intimidating man, his bushy eyebrows framed deep brown and welcoming eyes. However, to my dismay, they were currently clouded with annoyance and disapproval. He wore a soot-covered, blue-gray tunic and dark brown pants with those brown, steel-toed boots that my eyes had landed on (which hurt when they hit, mind you).

"Oh…," I said sheepishly. "H-hey there, boss! How's it going up there? Ha ha ha...," I trailed off, laughing nervously. Why, you might ask? Well, I happened to have overslept by a _slight_ margin of fifteen minutes to perhaps…two hours? The point is my boss was rather upset with me. And believe me, you do _not_ want to get on this guy's bad side.

"Well, you tell me, boy. Are you or are you not supposed to be delivering the Captain's order right now?" my dear, _dear_ boss questioned, raising his brow.

"Um, delivering?" I replied, dragging the word out in a cautious manner in an attempt to not further enrage him.

"So then why are you not delivering?!" Yikes. Way to go Maryon, you unleashed the beast. "Go on, now! The Captain's waiting, pretty boy!"

Sighing at the use of my little "nickname," I mumbled a little "yes sir" and sloppily pushed my self off the wooden floor that I had fallen onto. I threw on my ragged brown pants, blue shirt, and belt then slipped on my old leather boots. I grabbed my delivery bag and sprinted out the door of my room, only to be stopped by an unpleasant force to my stomach. I grunted in pain and doubled over before my boss slapped me across the back of the head.

"I was getting to that part," I coughed out, now clutching the parcel that had been slammed so graciously into my abdomen.

"Sure you were, kid. Need I remind you that you once rode all the way to Kakariko Village before opening an empty bag," my boss said, the _slightest_ hint of mockery lacing his voice.

I mumbled incoherently as I recalled that embarrassing experience. "Let's not talk about that one," I grumbled.

My boss gave a hearty laugh—a sign that he was getting close to forgiving me, thank Naryu. "Indeed, my boy. Indeed! Instead, you should get going!"

Remembering the reason why my gut was now throbbing, I shouted a quick good bye to my dear boss/adoptive guardian before dashing off. I took to the the bustling streets of Castle Town, zipping my way through the daily crowd. The sun was high in the sky; I believed that it was sometime around noon. Which, of course, was horrible for me, considering the Captain's order was due for eleven in the morning. Just what I need to start the day: the Captain of the Royal Army chewing me out. Fun.

In case you haven't figured it out yet, my name is Maryon Lorel, adopted son of the famous Terrance Lorel. I gained my prominent surname when good ol' pops found me on his doorstep. Apparently, I had been wearing a pendant in the shape of the Lorel crest. That pendant proved a connection to the blacksmith, seeing as only family members and close friends were supposed to have one. On this pendant, the words "_Beloved Maryon_" were inscribed, hence my name. I still wear the necklace daily, and it is the only reason the old man was able to convince me that he didn't give me such a feminine-sounding name just to spite me later on. However, just because he didn't give me the name doesn't mean it doesn't piss me off every time he mocks me for it.

With the pendant bumping rhythmically—albeit slightly painfully—against my chest in time with my hurried strides, I continued on my way to Hyrule Castle. While Castle Town's repairs had gone without a hitch, the castle itself had taken the worst of the blows during the Twilight War. Though the walls and towers still showed signs of damage, they had managed to clean up quite nicely. It looked even better now that they had gotten that right turret back up.

I regularly made visits to the castle while the boss helped replenish their armory. The good Captain Horuss and I had become close during my visits, and he taught me almost all I know about the art of swordsmanship. He was a kind yet disciplined man with light brown hair and light blue eyes. His slightly tanned skin showed scars from previous battles—marks of experience that most of Hyrule's sorry soldiers lacked. He was slightly unshaven, but it added to his rugged charisma. Coming up to the training grounds where he spent most of his time, I caught a glimpse of the Hylian army's leader hacking away at a defenseless training dummy. Unfortunately, I had to skip out on watching his technique for a bit, seeing as I was more than an hour late.

"Yo, Captain Horuss!" I called. He stopped in mid-swing and looked over his shoulder at me.

"Well, well, well," he chimed, turning around and quirking an eyebrow high. "Look who it is. Glad see you're finally up, delivery boy. Though, you forgot about the bedhead," he said, pointing to the mess of hazel atop my head. "You look like you just went a through an earthquake!"

"_Wow, that was surprisingly accurate. And what is with people and raising their eyebrows at me today!?_" I thought.

"Yeah, okay, my hair's a mess. Appearances aside, you hypocrite," I retorted, raising my finger to point at his own disarrayed hair. "I've got a package here with your name on it." I pulled out the parcel from my bag and raised it above my head in a flamboyant manner. Man, some fanfare would have been great right around there.

"Hey, at least my messed up hair came from doing something productive," he countered, taking the package from me. "It still amazes me how you have the gall to speak to your superiors with such brazenness." He chuckled and began to unwrap it.

"So, what's in it?" I asked.

"Your own old man made it and you have no idea what it is?" Horuss jeered.

"I thought it was considered rude to look at other people's mail. But if you're giving me express permission I'll just got right ahead from now on...," I trailed off, trying my best to smile innocently at him.

"Not so fast there, pretty boy. I've got my eye on you." He stuck out his pointer and middle fingers and pointed to his eyes before turning his wrist to point at me. He meant to sound stern, but we both knew that he was failing at that.

"Anyway, it's a new sword that I ordered from your father." He proceeded to unsheath that said sword with his left hand and swing it around. He dropped the sheath and put on a display of attacks to test out the sword.

"Show off," I muttered.

He swung the sword one last time before bring grasping the blade in his right hand. He brought it close and began to inspect it. After eyeing the entire length of the sword, he began to click his tongue while shaking his head. "Fine craftsmanship as always. Shouldn't have expected any less."

"Geez, Captain. How many swords does one guy need?" I scoffed. Truth be told, I was pretty jealous of his collection. I'd never admit it though.

"No need to be jealous, Maryon." Damn. "I was actually going to give mine the one I was just practicing with."

"Wait, what?" I asked, shocked and full of excitement.

"Yeah, of course. You're a man now, and Hyrule Field is a dangerous place. I'm surprised that your old man even let you go own there unarmed."

"So, it's real? As in, the blade is actual steel?"

"Yup. It's all yours, kid. Think of it as an early birthday present."

At that point, I lost control of my excitement. I began to jump around the training ground, attracting the attention of the rest of the soldiers there. I did a little jig here, a few cartwheels over there, and finally I ran around shouting joyously. That is until, for the second time that day, my face made contact with a cold, hard surface. I fell back and groaned, clutching my face.

"You done, pretty boy?"

"You know, your armor hurts. A lot."

The Captain just laughed at me. "Good to know it's doing its job! Now, let's go see if we can teach you how to wield a _real_ sword."


End file.
